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Afrojack - Kern 500

Afrojack (Kern 500) is an open-pollinated African Tall fodder maize — tall, leafy and late-maturing — grown for soft, leafy green fodder from a single cutting.

Please read this before you buy

Kern 500 is maize. It gives one cutting at 60–70 days. It is not a napier-type grass that you cut again and again. For a steady supply, sow in 2–3 lots, 15–20 days apart.

Land and sowing window

Soil: deep, fertile, well-drained loam. Avoid waterlogged patches
Best sowing: about 20 January – 20 February for spring/summer green fodder in North India
Later sowing: possible up to July, depending on your crop rotation and the monsoon

How to sow

Seed rate: about 16 kg per acre in lines (recommended); 22–32 kg per acre if broadcast
Spacing: 30 cm between rows × 10–15 cm between plants
Depth: 2–3 cm — deeper sowing gives poor germination
Broadcasting: use it only where line sowing with machines is not possible
Seed colour: treated seed looks reddish-pink because of the fungicide coating. This is normal
Pack size: 5 kg

Manure and fertiliser (per acre)

Test the soil first and adjust the doses to the result
Nitrogen (N): 24 kg, in two splits — half at sowing, the rest at about 30 days
Phosphorus (P₂O₅): 16 kg, all at sowing
Potash (K₂O): 8–16 kg, all at sowing

Water, weeds and pests

Irrigation: keep the soil moist during establishment; irrigate at once if you sow into dry soil. The critical stages are establishment and fast vegetative growth. A January–February sowing usually needs 3–5 irrigations, depending on heat and when the monsoon arrives
Weeds: close rows keep weeds down, but remove early weeds. One hoeing or light inter-culture at 20–30 days helps
Pests and diseases: watch for stem borer, fall armyworm, leaf blight, rust and stalk rots. Follow local IPM and your state advisory; use pheromone traps and biocontrol where available. Timely sowing and balanced nutrition reduce pest pressure
Lodging: tall plants can fall in heavy wind and rain. Avoid heavy irrigation plus heavy nitrogen just before a big rain spell

Where it will not do well

Maize does not tolerate waterlogging. Avoid low patches where water stands.

Harvest

Green fodder: at or just after flowering, about 60–70 days after sowing — soft, leafy and easy to digest
For silage: harvest later, at the milky to dough stage, 25–30 days after flowering
Crop system: fits as a catch or relay crop; maize + berseem and maize + cowpea are common fodder systems

किस्म	OP (खुली परागित) अफ़्रीकन टॉल चारा मक्का
सीज़न	बसंत/ग्रीष्म चारा मक्का — एक कटाई
बुवाई	20 जनवरी – 20 फरवरी (जुलाई तक संभव)
बीज दर	कतार में लगभग 16 किग्रा/एकड़ · छिटकवां 22–32 किग्रा/एकड़
दूरी	30 × 10–15 सेमी
खाद (प्रति एकड़)	N 24 (दो भागों में) · P 16 · K 8–16 किग्रा
सिंचाई	जनवरी–फरवरी बुवाई में 3–5 सिंचाई
कटाई	हरा चारा 60–70 दिन · साइलेज फूल के 25–30 दिन बाद
पैक	5 किग्रा

Saving your own seed

Kern 500 is open-pollinated, so you can let a small patch reach full grain maturity and save seed. It works reasonably for 2–3 seasons, though vigour and purity drift slowly. For your main commercial plot, fresh seed each season gives the most uniform stand.